Door Parts Explained

Ever wondered what each of the parts of a door are called and what they mean? You may now be in a position where you have to know, for whatever reason, and the door parts names and functions are necessary to some DIY or the purchase of a part. You may be on the cusp of repairing your own doors, fitting a new one either for yourself or for a friend, and now you need to know the ins and outs. Well, we’re here to help. 

As you can imagine there are many different parts to a door. Knowing the names for each one and what purpose it serves is useful if you need to replace one without replacing the whole door. Let’s take a look at the individual segment then, and by the end you’ll be a little bit wiser as to what goes into the making of each part!

Door Head

The door head is the horizontal part of the actual frame. This is at the top of the door with 2 grooves where the jambs of the frame will fit.

Sill/Threshold

This is at the bottom of the frame, and sits below the door. In the main, it’s mostly exterior doors that have these. It helps support the door and also helps to get rid of any excess moisture by draining off water from the outside before it can get in.

Door Stop

This is a door frame or door frame stop. This is on the inside of the door rather than the outside.

Door Jamb

These are the vertical parts of a door. It will run on either side of the door and connect to the head of the door sill, that’s if the door has one. A jamb will hold on to the door through the hinges on one side and then provide a hollow or groove on the other side so your door can close.

Door Leaf

This is the door itself and that’s without everything else that comes with a door, such as the handles and the hinges. Once these have been added you have a door set.

Architrave

This is part of the casing of the door and is a decorative trim around its frame. You will normally purchase it separately and it is part of the moulding. You can remove it and attach it quickly, and it won’t impact on how the door works.

Door Lipping

This is an edge that will run around the bottom of a door and the two edges. It protects another piece of the door known as a particle board. It’s thick and solid so you need to keep this in mind if you decide to cut it.

Door Lining/Casing

This forms part of a door frame and will encompass the head, jambs and the sill. You can use it to hang the door and also use it to dress the door opening and hide the plasterboard and the stud wall.

Sash Door

This bit is partly made of glass and always refers to the glass part of a door. The sash part may be a set of frosted glass panels or smaller ones that form a pattern. If it’s sash then it’s glass. They’re often used to bring light into a hallway or porch.

Door Lite

This the name given to the individual glass panels we’ve just spoken about above. They’re either frosted or clear and they can be in internal or external doors. If you have lites on an exterior door they will normally be double glazed.

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